While many of the nation's fed-up rock radio listeners have been fleeing to satellite pay stations to escape commercials and obnoxious DJ banter, the Valley's classic-album-rock fans continue to get treated to the equivalent of Sirius' "deep cuts" channel, The Vault, without the $12.95-a-month subscription fee. Thanks to a mysterious radio station owner named Ted Tucker who, near as we can tell, likes sharing his personal collection of long-forgotten tracks from the golden era of "free-form" FM radio over one of several station bands he owns, KCDX is now, amazingly, in its third year of broadcasting wowzers by the likes of Procol Harum, The Band, and Traffic -- with the occasional Billy Joel or Men at Work megahit tossed in -- 100 percent commercial-free.

Recently, the station launched a sparse three-page Web site that keeps track of the songs just played and allows listeners to make requests via e-mail, but still reveals nothing about the station. No one knows how long it'll last, but for now, KCDX is like listening in on your favorite hippie uncle's quirky iPod library. Readers' Choice: KUPD-FM 97.9

Power 92.3 has been bringing hip-hop to Phoenix since long before OutKast had every yuppie in town singing "Hey Ya!" at the company picnic -- and good thing. This stop on the dial puts formula-driven stations on the front street with rambunctious personalities and programming actually worth listening to. Our favorite is the "3:30 Dirty Dirty" where listeners get to "put someone on blast" over the airwaves. Pissed off at that ho gettin' all up on your man? Call in a blast and enjoy mocking her over the airwaves. Public humiliation is only part of what makes Power 92.3 so good -- what really makes it our pick is, of course, the music. Every weekday afternoon from noon to 1, DJ Mikee Mike kicks it old skool with the best hip-hop from the '90s, and the two-hour drive at 5 actually has a live DJ on the turntables mixing it up.

Power 92.3 has what other Valley radio stations lack: a soul. Readers' Choice: KKFR-FM Power 92.3

As an independent business, Stinkweeds sets the right example. Instead of trying to be all things to all people, the store's new and used merchandise is well-defined: everything that's under the radar, from indie rock and punk to alt-country and electronica. Shoppers don't come here for the latest Top 40 hits, because they already know what to expect. And sometimes that means music by bands they've never heard of but trust to be good -- that's how carefully and tastefully edited the merch is. Offering edgy picks on the listening stations, shelves of underground magazines and hard-to-find DVDs, tickets to upcoming concerts, and occasional in-store performances by local and national bands, Stinkweeds is a hub of unpretentious cool. With a second location that just opened at Central and Camelback, this funky shop is heading in the right direction. Readers' Choice: Zia Record Exchange

Although Phoenix now stands as one of the major markets for traditional country, many old-school country fans have become alienated by the city's other C&W radio outlets. Both come off a little too slick and commercialized compared to the off-the-beaten-path playlist favored by Wickenburg's high-powered KSWG. Calling itself Arizona's "Real Country" station, KSWG features a mix of old artists rubbing elbows with up-and-comers like Gretchen Wilson, Jeff Bates and Rhonda Vincent -- anyone fits, "as long as they sound Ôreal,'" according to the station's mission statement -- not to mention Kip Pollay's weekly fishing reports. So far, so real. Readers' Choice: KMLE-FM 108

Still the Valley's only classical music station, KBAQ differs little from the longhair outlets found in other major U.S. cities -- it's public-supported (and hence, subject to periodic pledge-week begging), run out of an educational station based at a university, and gets much of its programming courtesy of National Public Radio. Still, dependable "K-Bach" offers a tasty mix of specialty programming, including live symphony simulcasts at dusk and eerily perfect wake-up music in the early hours. And while the classical format probably makes the least demands on a programmer to stay current, KBAQ does an admirable job of staying on the cutting edge of ancient music, mixing moldy oldies by Vivaldi and Tchaikovsky with odd takes on Brahms by the French choral ensemble Accentus and Chinese chants by current Grammy darlings Chanticleer. Readers' Choice: KBAQ-FM 89.5

The Valley's own master of shock rock has been mining his shtick for so long now -- 35 years and counting -- it's easy to take his contributions for granted. (Who else would we have to blame for Marilyn Manson?) And Cooper's recent ventures, from the establishment of his downtown Alice Cooper'stown nightclub to his stint as the 7 p.m. to midnight man on classic-rock stalwart KDKB, seem purposely driven by his desire not to be overlooked in his own hometown. Yet it's still a kick to hear the dark humorist rant about everything from his run-ins with early Ozzy to making Miss Piggy's Christmas card list as he mixes his latest comeback attempts with rock standards on the station that helped make him a billion-dollar baby back in the day. Following Steve Van Zandt's lead, Alice's show is now syndicated in 16 cities and growing. But he's still our little rock legend -- now more than ever, in fact -- and we love him to death. Readers' Choice: Howard Stern